UK’s first real-time shopping directory launches in Gloucester

5th September 2019

A digital platform for the community and retail has been launched in Gloucester.

StreetPin was launched at the UK:DRIC, the national centre for digital retail innovation in Gloucester, this month. StreetPin seeks to help independent shops, market stalls and local services without the digital know-how, to make the most of the internet.

It focusses on the huge gulf between digital sales solutions like pay-per-click, Groupon, keyword bidding etc and traditional sales solutions like printed leaflets, circulars and directory listings. The aim is to help the High Street leverage millions of potential small volume deals, disposal-saving promotions and generally make the most of the ‘here and now’.

Retailers on the StreetPin platform can create their own stand-alone website (Pinboard) within minutes and start trading. Each Pinboard is a blend of community conversations, expert advice and instant deals – everything from recipe recommendations from the butchers, to the pop-up shop discounting goods before they close.

Tim Buick, founder of StreetPin, has been delivering digital solutions for large businesses for 20 years and now seeks to make ‘digital’ accessible to those that ‘don’t do digital’. He has built and tested 5 previous versions of StreetPin and has now pulled all these learnings together into a commercially-ready version 6, and will continue to evolve thanks to retailers’ invaluable feedback.

Tim Buick, said: “StreetPin champions the pillars of local, instant and simplicity. Where many small businesses may get lost creating a digital ad campaign, the high street sports shop knows that their ideal target audience is the group of 200 runners that meet around the corner every Tuesday and the members of the gym 100m away. StreetPin makes these connections possible, simply and affordably.

“The UK:DRIC has been like an extra member of our team, with introductions, testing, lots of social mentions and invaluable insights. With UK:DRIC’s support, we’ve managed to set up our first real multi-venue trial – in the Eastgate Indoor Market. This is an ideal test-bed for StreetPin as there tends to be a high concentration of entrepreneurial traders, with limited experience of engaging customers that are not in their immediate proximity, especially on a digital/real-time basis. With the trial in full swing, we are receiving lots of great feedback and responsively improving our tools, enabling us to provide a real user-centric product, ready to scale throughout Gloucestershire.”

Emily Knight, Director of UK:DRIC, commented: “StreetPin is an ideal platform for small businesses looking to make their first step in creating an online presence. StreetPin’s enthusiasm and willingness to learn from both retailers and consumers has created an incredibly accessible interface for businesses to post notices and advertise promotions, removing barriers to digital inclusion. It has also been exciting to introduce StreetPin to businesses working with the UK:DRIC as they can already see the potential in collaboration, further enhancing the digital high street ecosystem we are creating in Gloucester.”